As Love Blooms (34 page)

“We have to get out of the boat to check. Do you see anything to tie it to?”

She swung the lantern around. “Nothing.”

“Then you stay here and I’ll go check.”

“No!”

“So you want to be the one to go inside and see if there’s anything there?”

Tessa bit her lip. Neither option made her happy. If she had her druthers, she’d stay in the boat, but would Reese think she was scared? How could he not? But if she offered to go, he’d refuse to
let her. Then she could act irritated but still stay in the boat—safe and sound.

“Sure, I’ll go.” Using her best acting voice, she took on the confidence of a pirate. “You can boost me up.”

He seemed to study her for a minute. “Are you sure?”

“Absolutely.”

“All right, let’s do it.” He pressed his hands to his thighs and stood. “I know you like a thrill every now and then, and this one should be safer than riding a motorcycle.”

“Truly?” She nearly choked, but she didn’t dare tell him she’d been pretending. “You’re going to let me do it?”

He hiked a shoulder. “Why not? I’ll be here if you need me.”

“What do I do?”

He took her hand and pulled her to her feet. “I’ll lift you up to the ledge. Then once you’re inside, I’ll pass you the lantern.”

She swallowed. Was she really going to do this?

“Ready, my little risk taker?”

She nodded. They moved slowly in the flat-bottomed boat until they were in position.

“Be careful.” Reese’s breath was hot against her ear. He placed his hands on her waist. “One, two . . .”

On three, he lifted her high enough that if she swung her feet upward, she could reach the opening. Thank goodness she was wearing overalls. At the last second, he gave her a little extra push, which made her land hard on the clammy stone floor.

“You okay?” he asked.

“Peachy.” She leaned over the edge and took the lantern from him.

Even with the lantern illuminating the small cave room, the craggy rocks left eerie shadows she’d have to explore.

“What do you see?”

“A lot of crevices.” She took a few steps away from the doorway and stopped. “Reese, can you still hear me?”

“Sure.” He paused. “Listen, if this is too much, come back down, and I’ll go up. I shouldn’t have let you do it anyway.”

“I’m fine.” At least she was physically. Her nerves, on the other hand, were a bit shaky. She eased along the right side of the room. What if some creature made an appearance? Did snakes live in caves? She shuddered at the thought.

“See anything?” Reese’s voice startled her.

“Nothing yet.” Her light illuminated something wedged inside one of the crevices. “Wait. I think I found a sack.” She set the lantern on the ground and pushed her hand past the cobwebs into the crack. Her fingers came into contact with a familiar itchy fabric. Burlap? She gripped it and yanked it free.

After grabbing the lantern, she hurried to the edge and hoisted the sack in the air for Reese to see.

“Great work, Tessa.” He held up his hands. “Hand it to me, then pass me the lantern.”

She did as she was told, then sat on the edge and waited for him to help her down. A noise behind her made her skin crawl. “Now, Reese, now!”

 28 

Reese tossed the sack in the bottom of the boat and whirled. The panic in Tessa’s voice made his heart race. He yanked her off the ledge and set her down in the boat. “Are you okay?”

She wrapped her arms around herself and shivered. “All of a sudden I got the distinct feeling I wasn’t alone up there.”

He lifted the lantern in the air to see the opening. “I don’t see anything.” She’d probably gotten spooked. He certainly didn’t blame her.

After tugging off his jacket, he wrapped it around her shoulders. “Better?”

“Much.” She burrowed inside it. “Reese, not that I haven’t enjoyed this little outing, but can we go back now?”

“Had enough adventure for one day?” He chuckled. “Now there’s a first.”

Half an hour later, they exited the cave with the burlap sack in hand. Reese untied the rope binding its top and gently poured its contents on the ground. A few fragments of pottery and arrowheads tumbled out first. He gave it another gentle shake, and a human skull rolled to the ground.

Tessa gasped and covered her mouth with her hand. “Reese, who would have taken this?”

“Only park employees know about the cave’s back rooms.”

“Nels?”

“Maybe.” He put the items back in the bag. “But we don’t know enough to accuse him.”

“I don’t understand. Why would anyone do this?”

“Collectors will pay a pretty penny for items like this. Whoever took this might be a collector themselves or might be looking at making some money by selling these artifacts.”

“That’s despicable. Whatever happened to honoring the dead?”

He pressed his hand to the small of her back. “We’ll get to the bottom of this, Tessa, I promise. And we’ll put these things back where they belong.”

Tessa stood back and surveyed the garden she and Reese were creating. The perennials they’d planted were filling the areas in nicely with bright pink blooms. The shrubs had taken root, and the only landscaping left was to lay the pathways with paving bricks. In another two weeks, it would be complete.

She missed Reese’s company at Como. Given Monday’s discovery, Mr. Nussbaumer had requested his presence at the Indian Mounds Park both yesterday and today. She couldn’t very well join them and keep her identity a secret, but she trusted him to do what he promised. He’d find out who was taking the artifacts and return the items to their rightful home.

After removing her straw hat, she wiped her sleeve across her brow and smiled. Rock-solid, honest, faithful Reese would take care of the situation there, while as his partner, she’d handle the one here.

She plopped her hat back on and returned to the wheelbarrow. Once she had these plants in, two of the three sections of the garden would be complete.

She paused. Like mercury in a thermometer on an August day, a creepy feeling rose inside her. Was someone watching her? Not
wanting to scare away whomever it might be, she nonchalantly took the shovel from the wheelbarrow and glanced around. Movement in the trees caught her attention. She gripped the handle of the shovel. Why would someone be spying on her? Had someone discovered she was a woman?

She was probably overreacting. Too many stories filling her head. Besides, people came to the park to do all sorts of things. This fellow was probably hiking or enjoying the variety of trees in the arbor. Just in case, she’d keep her hat on and her head down.

When the figure moved again, she glimpsed something yellow out of the corner of her eye. That had to be a good sign. There was no way any respectable outlaw would get caught wearing yellow. But was it someone who was trying to out her disguise?

She couldn’t worry about that now.

Shoving the interloper from her mind, she went back to work, planting several clusters of candy-colored lupines. The whimsical spires were among her favorites in this garden. When she finished, she looked up to see someone again watching her—only this time he was near the water fountain, a yellow kerchief hanging from his back pocket.

He was still too far away to be of any danger to her, but his presence unnerved her. If only she could see his face, she might be able to determine if he were friend or foe.

Stop it, Tessa. You’re letting
your imagination run away with you.

Sam patted her lips with her napkin. White linens and glittery chandeliers might make conversations more civil, but they did not make them any easier.

“James, I believe it’s time to discuss the elephant in the room.”

He looked around the tearoom at Field-Schlick’s Department Store and chuckled. “I don’t see any elephants.”

Undeterred, she took a deep breath and pressed on. “You and
I are much alike. We are both strong willed and civic minded. We are dear, dear friends.”

“And even a bit more?”

“Yes, a bit.” A slight smile slipped through.

“Before you continue, why don’t we walk while we talk?” He stood and pulled out her chair. “I believe you might enjoy the displays in the crystal shop.”

“Even cut glass won’t distract me. We need to discuss this.”

“And we will.” He directed her toward the elevator. It took three attempts before the elevator operator, an elderly gentleman who was hard of hearing, understood what floor they wanted.

After the elderly man closed the wire doors on the elevator car, Sam turned to James. “You know that suffrage is important to me. I have to know where you stand on the issue.”

“Is it that important to you? Must we agree?” He took her hand and squeezed it. “Isn’t this good enough?”

She pulled her hand away. “Why are you against letting women vote? Why do you want to deny women one of the fundamental rights of our democracy?”

Oblivious, the elevator operator stared at the floor indicator over the door.

“Samantha, it isn’t that I want to deny women anything.” The elevator came to a stop. “In fact, the reason I’m against women’s suffrage is quite the opposite.”

She stepped from the car and waited for him. “I’m listening.”

He held up one finger. “First of all, women already have the right to vote in local elections, like that of the school board. I think it’s best for women to be content with that.”

“Why?”

“I don’t want women to be drawn into the dirty pool of politics, and I can assure you it is an ugly place.” He massaged the back of his neck. “Politics is a game of force, and women are not made to be that stern.”

She raised her eyebrows. “Have you met Hannah?”

He motioned her toward the crystal room. Sam wandered among the goblets and bowls while James remained a few steps back. Apparently the idea of bumping a shelf kept him frozen in place.

She picked up a cake stand and ran her finger along the sharp edges of the cut glass. “Go on, James.”

“Right now, many laws give an almost chivalric courtesy to women.” He shifted his weight to his other foot. “They aren’t required to serve on juries, and if they’re charged with a crime, the punishment is much less severe. Equality will destroy these benefits to the fairer sex.”